Amends
by Zmaster1138
Summary: A Brookly centered fanfiction. The story is about how he finally find love. The gargoyles also had to confront a new enemy. Rated M for violence and suggested adult themes in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Gargoyles, its characters and concepts are copyright to Disney.

Foreword

Hello everyone, this is my first Gargoyles fanfic. I found the end of the series not very fulfilling, and I was inspired to write something. I think this is kind of an alternate universe, as I treat everything that happened after the episode "Generations" as if it didn't happen at all. This story takes place after that episode.

Many thnaks for evilredmenace and Mrs. Optimus Prime helping me to write the story!

Hope you enjoy reading it, and reviews are always welcome!

Chapter one

The shadows stretched long as the sun sank towards the horizon. As the last of the sunlight disappeared over New York, roars echoed from the top of the Eyrie building. The gargoyles woke up from their daily sleep, stretching themselves while the shards of their stone skin flew everywhere.  
Brooklyn jumped on the tower wall and climbed up to Goliath's sleeping place. As he moved upwards, he noticed everyone had started their usual routine. Hudson and Bronx had walked inside; probably to watch television or to read in the library. Since Hudson had first learned to read, he had spent more time with books than with TV. Lexington couldn't wait to go and see Alex. Angela and Broadway would spend the night together either inside or outside the castle. They had been a couple for some time, leaving Brooklyn in an uncomfortable position. Both gargoyles were his friends. Of course, he was happy that Broadway had found love with Angela. However, he also had a crush on Angela as well.  
The red gargoyle forced those thoughts out of his head. His had more important things to do. Once he reached the top of the tower, he jumped over the ledge and walked beside Goliath.  
"Where will tonight's watch be?" he asked his leader.  
Almost every night over the past few weeks, Goliath, Brooklyn, and Elisa had teamed up and guarded different parts of the city. Elisa was very good at choosing locations, because every week they had caught a few bad guys.  
"There will be no patrol tonight," Goliath answered in his deep but calm voice. "Elisa wants to show me something in Central Park."  
"Uh, well I guess I will do a short patrol then on my own," he answered, half surprised and half disappointed. The patrols were the only thing that prevented him from thinking about Angela and Broadway. It was obvious that Elisa wanted to meet Goliath alone. Of course, he knew that there was something between them. They weren't a couple like Broadway and Angela, but Brooklyn guessed they would try to work out something to overcome their physical differences.  
"Once again, your responsibility to the city tells me it was a good decision to choose you for my second in command," Goliath said. "But don't let it rest too heavily on your shoulders. You don't have to prove anything to the clan or to me. I suggest that you get some rest tonight."  
Goliath's words made sense, but Goliath didn't know the true reason for Brooklyn's enthusiasm for patrols, and Brooklyn was not about to tell him. Even if he did tell him, he didn't think anything would change. So he acknowledged what Goliath said with a nod and watched as he flew away.  
Brooklyn still was up for the patrol, but since he didn't need to hurry anymore, he went to the kitchen to eat something. As he stepped in, he noticed Broadway was there with Angela. It seemed they were making sandwiches.  
"Hi guys! Is there anything left in the fridge for me?" he asked, looking at Broadway. The big green gargoyle always ate a lot. His passion for food was almost as great as his passion for Angela.  
"Of course," Broadway replied. "One of the best things about this place is that it never runs out of food."  
Brooklyn stepped to the fridge, opened it, and scanned the inside. While he was looking for something to grab, Angela finished another sandwich and put it down on the table.  
"You're not going with Goliath tonight?" Angela asked.  
"Nope. He changed the plan. Or I guess Elisa changed it. Anyway, I'll just eat something and go for a patrol by myself."  
"We're planning to go for a movie. Why don't you come with us? You could use some rest." Angela offered to him. She could tell Brooklyn looked a bit tired lately.  
"Yeah, she's right. You should come and have some fun," Broadway added. "We'll watch Avatar. I know you like Cameron's films. So we won't take no for an answer."  
From behind the fridge door, Brooklyn let out a silent sigh. He really didn't want to go with them; however, there was no way for him to say no, especially since Angela had asked him.  
"Okay, I'll go." He shut the door closed after he pulled out salami.  
"Then we need to go or we'll be late. Don't worry about the food, I made enough …" Angela's voice trailed off as she looked down at the table. She swung around and faced Broadway. "Hey! A moment ago there were five sandwiches!"  
"Um," Broadway tried to answer with his mouth still full of food. But he swallowed first. "And now there are four and a half." He showed what remained of the sandwich he had grabbed while Angela wasn't looking. "I can't help it. They are delicious."  
The compliment immediately melted Angela's anger. "Okay, but no more stealing. We also want to eat tonight," she said, as she stroked Broadway's face. The green gargoyle smiled at her, and before she could withdraw her hand, he grabbed it and gently kissed it. Angela chuckled a bit before she put away the sandwiches on the table.  
Brooklyn watched them, feeling some pain inside. How he wished that Angela would smile at him the way she smiled at Broadway. But she was out of his reach; that simple kiss was yet another reminder of that. And although he knew that neither of them had done it deliberately, he feared that it would only continue for the rest of the night.

Pain went through her body. She fell to her knees while the agony moved through her entire being. It felt like her back was being torn apart. Instead, two wings grew out of her back. After a few more seconds, the change was complete.  
Demona stood up and sighed as the pain was finally over. She walked to an armchair where she prepared her clothes before she changed. She always had to undress before sunset, otherwise she had to throw out her human clothes. Not that she cared about them that much, but it was annoying to buy a whole new wardrobe of dresses each week.  
She had hoped that the pain from the transformation would disappear once the Weird Sisters had shown up last week. They informed her that MacBeth has become Arthur Pendragon's knight and that the Excalibur had severed the magic link between them. They had come to remove all of the remains of their spell, and her immortality had been taken away.  
She had hoped that this would mean that she wouldn't suffer any more from the transformation, but Puck's spell remained. Demona cursed his name every night.  
Once she was dressed, she walked to her computer and checked the reports. Since she had started the company, it had become a routine to employ humans to do different work for her. Two weeks ago, she had received a report, which had said that someone had broken into Dr. Sevarius's house.  
She had to deal with this problem. Sevarious had officially retired from active work and had left Nightsone Unlimited. It had been his idea and Demona had decided let the man go. He had served his purpose and the longer she kept him, the more likely it would be that he would double cross her. Of course, it would have been a lot easier to execute him in order to ensure his compliance, but she could still use him in the future. Until then, it was better that he not know much about her plans.  
However, she kept Sevarius observed. That was why she had knowledge of the robbery. Her source managed to find out that the burglar had stolen his research data. Too bad her source couldn't tell her exactly what sort of research it was. Knowing Sevarius, it was probably some sort of bioengineering data, but other than that, she had no idea. Since he had a lot of data on gargoyles, it was vital for her to find the thief or thieves. She couldn't allow the chance that someone – like a hunter – could manage to develop some sort of biological weapon against her kind.  
Demona's fist hit the table hard as she hissed irritably. There hadn't been any progress in this matter. Neither the police nor her men were able to find any useful information. The worst thing was that she had no idea who would dare to break into the lab. Xanatos was a natural suspect, but not likely. The clan stayed at the castleas well as his family. He wouldn't have risked their safety. Besides, Demona reasoned that Xanatos could easily buy the data from Sevarious, or just hire someone else to do the research. Renard was another a possibility, but this was not the old man's style.  
Thailog could be an option, assuming he survived their last battle. Thinking about the big gargoyle made her sigh. She was unlucky with the males. As a young gargoyle, she had easily fallen for Goliath. At the time, he had been a strong, handsome, and fierce warrior. He had even become the leader of the clan. But it turned out that he was a fool. It was more important to him to protect the humans than to protect his own kind.  
But Thailog was different. He had had no objection against her plans to wipe the humans out. Well, he hadn't wanted to kill everyone, because he wanted servants and slaves and she could agree with that idea. But he had betrayed her when he had wanted to kill her daughter.  
Still, Demona missed him. No, not him. She missed someone to love. Even her daughter turned away from her, again, thanks to human treachery. Demona dismissed these thoughts with an angry growl. She had more important things to worry about.  
Maybe she could find out something by herself. So she walked to the balcony of her apartment and jumped in the air. She flew towards Sevarius's house. She had been there before, but she considered it a good starting point.

Brooklyn could barely concentrate on the movie. They had flown to their usual cinema and had watched the show from the back, almost next to the projector. The film had seemed good but his attention had been drawn to his friends even as he had tried to stop noticing them.  
Angela had been leaning her back against Broadway for some time now, and the big green gargoyle had put his arms around her. Occasionally, they shared a light kiss. Every time they did, Brooklyn felt a knife in his chest, and felt it twisting. Broadway had been right about Angela's sandwiches. They tasted good. Too bad he wasn't hungry any more. Of course, he didn't want to offend her and managed to eat one.  
The movie seemed to go on forever. Finally, the end credits showed up. Brooklyn immediately jumped to his feet. It wasn't very polite, but he needed to get away from them and clear his mind.  
"Uh, sorry folks. I forgot that I have to take care of something," he said, apologetically.  
"Like what? We might be able to help," Broadway offered.  
"Just some stuff. It won't take long. We'll meet back at the castle. Bye." And with that, Brooklyn hurried out of the room through the hole on the roof. He didn't want it to turn into an argument.  
He flew high above the city. He felt a mix of sorrow and anger. However, he wasn't sure why he was angry. Maybe because his friends had acted like a loving couple throughout the entire movie and hadn't noticed the effect on him. But maybe he was just angry because he was fool enough to go with them.  
Brooklyn descended over the rooftops and searched for some crime. He felt like he needed to beat up a bad guy to let out his anger. But it seemed as if no one wanted to rob anyone on this night. After an hour of flying, his anger was gone and only the pain of loneliness remained. He landed on a rooftop near Central Park. He sat there for hours, thinking. He felt very alone. Brooklyn knew he could count on his clan, and that they would protect each other. But he needed someone special to share the nights with him; someone that he could love. But this city lacked gargoyles, especially female gargoyles.

Broadway stood up to follow Brooklyn. He had known Brooklyn for a long time, and he could tell that Brooklyn had used a made up excuse in order to avoid them. The fact that he just left them without a true reason made Broadway upset. Then he felt a tug on his arm.  
"Let him go, Broadway." Angela said, quietly.  
"Why? He sure owes us an explanation," the big gargoyle protested.  
"Just let him go for now. He will explain himself when he is ready. Come sit back and listen to the music."  
Reluctantly, Broadway sat back, but he still wasn't happy that one of his friends had gone away without any explanation.  
Angela, on the other hand, knew what Brooklyn's problem was. When she had first arrived to New York, each member of the trio had tried to win her. It turned out that Lexington hadn't been that serious, and soon treated her as a friend. But Brooklyn and Broadway had been very persistent. In the end, she had chosen Broadway, and only thought of Brooklyn as a friend and fellow clan member.  
She had noticed how far he had grown from the others, and that was the reason she had invited him to this movie. But now she feared that it might have been a mistake. She really liked Broadway's affection for her, and she hadn't wanted to hurt Broadway by making him turn away from her during the movie.  
She knew Brooklyn felt something for her. Something more than friendship, and her relationship with Broadway surely hurt him. She only wanted the best for him, and she was sad that it had turned out this way.  
Maybe she had to give him more time to accept her as a friend. The worst thing was that she couldn't discuss this with Broadway. It seemed as if he hadn't noticed Brooklyn's interest in her, and she didn't want to risk an argument between them. But as she looked at Broadway's face, she could sense that he was frustrated with Brooklyn's sudden departure. And she feared it would only get worse.

Demona was irritated. Her search came up empty again. Unfortunately, she couldn't blame anyone else, as it was her failure. She had been on her way back to the Nightstone Unlimited building when she felt an odd sensation, as if someone were watching her. She looked back but saw no one.  
Demona had plenty of time before sunrise, so she decided to find out if someone really was following her, or if she was just being more paranoid tonight than usual. With a slight move of her wings, Demona flew towards a building and landed on the roof. Immediately, she found a place for cover.  
Seconds passed. She waited and listened for any noise that would expose anyone who might have been following her. But there was no such noise. After a minute, Demona nearly decided that there was no point in waiting anymore, when she heard a noise.  
It wasn't something she expected. It sounded like a small engine. If she were in her human form, she would not have been able to notice it. She pulled her gun out. It was just a pistol, but Xanatos manufactured this one, and it was one of his non-projectile weapons.  
As the noise came closer, her muscles tightened. She took a deep breath and jumped out from her cover, aiming the weapon directly at the area of the noise's origin. To her surprise, it was a small flying drone that followed her. It was the size of a dog, and a rotor kept it in the air. Without thinking, she fired her weapon. The energy blast hit the drone, which fell on the rooftop and broke into several pieces.  
Demona scanned the area for more, but it looked as if only one had come after her. She put away her weapon and walked to the drone's wreck to examine it. The construction was familiar to her. The last time she had seen those types of parts was when she had worked with Xanatos to create the Steel clan. But why would Xanatos spy on her, and why break into Sevarius's house?  
It still did not made sense, but at least she knew the first person to ask. Demona grabbed the largest piece of the drone and flew back to her building.

When Angela and Broadway arrived back to the castle, Broadway started to look for Brooklyn. Of course, the red gargoyle hadn't returned yet. While Broadway was busy with the search, Angela approached Hudson's room. She figured he was the only person who might be able to give her some advice. He was older and wiser, and could judge the situation objectively.  
Hudson sat in his armchair and watched the television while Bronx lay next to his armchair, glancing occasionally at the screen. Bronx wasn't very interested in the shows, but preferred the petting from the older gargoyle. The door opened, and Angela stepped into the room. Hudson muted the television and greeted his guest.  
"Good evening, lass."  
"Hello, Hudson. Can I talk to you? I have a problem and I don't know who I can I turn to," Angela said, hoping he would listen to her.  
Hudson took a deep breath. The old gargoyle could tell that that there was some kind of love problem by the expression on her face. He had seen that look too many times in the past. Too bad he could never give good advice. At the very least, he could come up with some solution, but he didn't consider love affairs to be his strong point.  
"Of course, lass. I'll help if I can."  
Already, Angela felt relieved that she could discuss this with someone.  
"It's about Brooklyn. Lately, he has been acting very strangely. I mean, he goes out for patrols night after night, sometimes alone, and spends no time with the clan. And I fear that I might be the reason."  
"How is that?" he asked. To be honest, Hudson had thought that she might have had some trouble with Broadway.  
"Well, when I've arrived to Manhattan, the guys were all over me. Then, after a while, I chose Broadway to be my mate. But I think Brooklyn is still in love with me… or maybe he's angry with me, because I chose Broadway. And that's why he avoiding me." Angela explained.  
"If that is the case, I wouldn't be worried. He just needs some time alone to forget about you. When it's over he will be the same."  
"But it's been several weeks!" Angela protested.  
"Some need more time than others," Hudson replied. "The lad is a strong one. He will be over it soon."  
"I hope so," Angela said, not too convinced. She stood up and headed for the door.

Just minutes before sunrise, Brooklyn arrived back at the castle and immediately occupied his post for the day. The others were already there. Broadway took the position next to his.  
"I'm glad you are back. What took you so long?" Broadway asked when Brooklyn's feet had barely touched the stone.  
"As I said, I had to take care of some stuff," He replied, not in the mood to discuss it.  
"Oh yeah, and you said it wouldn't take long."  
"Well, then it took longer than I expected," Brooklyn replied, with some irritation in his voice.  
"Okay. May I ask what sort of stuff you needed to take care of?" Broadway asked, his voice telling Brooklyn that he was getting irritated with his evasion. Now Brooklyn felt himself uncomfortable. He didn't want to make Broadway angry. But he needed to tell him something quickly because Broadway was getting pissed. He could tell that he was lying to his face.  
"I ... um …" he tried to make up something quickly. But in that moment the sun had risen and the gargoyles froze in your document here...


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Gargoyles, its characters and concepts are copyright to Disney.

**Foreword**

First of all, thank you for the reviews!  
I would like to tell everybody that posting a new chapter takes months for me, so this story will progress slowly. I'd rather post a complete chapter than post just a page or two.  
I must thank evilredmenace for her help, who is beta reading my story and does an excellent job correcting grammar and plot holes!

Once, again reviews are welcome!

**Chapter 2**

The shredding shards of the gargoyles' stone skins barely touched the ground when Broadway and Brooklyn continued as if they had not been interrupted.  
"So?" Broadway demanded.  
Fortunately, Brooklyn had an idea that would save him from the situation. He knew he would be lying to his friend, but he couldn't see any other way out of it.  
"I've been trying to track down some robbers. I was watching over a place that they were likely to rob. But they never came, so that's why I stayed out a while."  
"You should have told us," Broadway said, now with a calmer voice. He could totally see how one could be forgetful about time. When he was out on patrol he could easily forget how late it was. "Angela and I could help you out. The three of us could cover more ground."  
"No thanks," came the quick reply from Brooklyn, holding his hand up. His gaze moved behind Broadway for a moment to see Angela's face. She had tensed up a bit when Broadway had offered to help. Looks like she doesn't want to work with me willingly, Brooklyn thought bitterly.  
"I can manage myself." He said finally, jumping down from the wall. Goliath arrived just in time to hear Brooklyn's final words and see the surprise of the others at his sudden departure.  
"What's going on?" Goliath demanded. Lately, he had noticed some changes in his second in command, but Brooklyn had never left a conversation so suddenly.  
"That's what I'd like to know," Broadway said, with renewed frustration in his voice. "Brooklyn said he was hunting some robbers, and just turned down our offer for help him. As if we weren't good enough for him! Angela gently touched the green gargoyle's arm.  
"Maybe that isn't the reason," she said, quietly.  
"Don't worry, I'll go and ask him," Lexington offered. Goliath turned to the little gargoyle. He was about to follow Brooklyn and question him personally, but on second thought Lexington would be a wiser choice. Goliath noticed that Brooklyn had treated him with a little distance of late, so he might open up more to Lexington.  
"Very well," he agreed. Without hesitation Lexington jumped into the night air. He could still see Brooklyn gliding in the sky, so he could easily follow him and eventually catch up to him.

After a short flight, Brooklyn settled down on a rooftop to decide what to do. He didn't have too many options. So he shrugged and prepared to take off again to catch some bad guys when he noticed that Lexington had landed beside him.  
"Hey, you still in a hurry? We should talk," Lexington said.  
Brooklyn turned his head to him but still prepared to jump. "About what?" he asked, already knowing the answer.  
"About how you treat your clan mates. Even Goliath has noticed that something is wrong with you."  
"So you came because Goliath sent you" Brooklyn snapped, furious. He barely contained a growl.  
"I came because I'm worried about my friend," Lex replied, with a bit of irritation in his voice. How could Brooklyn suggest that he didn't care about him.  
Brooklyn was about to snap at him again. Then he realized that he didn't have anything against Lex, or any of the clan, really. With a sigh, he climbed down from the edge.  
"Alright, Lex. You want to know my problem?" Lexington nodded so he continued. " I guess I'm still not over the fact that Broadway and Angela are a couple now."  
"Yeah, I suspected that was the problem, but it's good to hear it from you. You know you can't just go away like this every night because things didn't work out like you hoped."  
"I know," Brooklyn said, turning away from Lexington to look at the city's lights. "I just need more time, that's all."  
"I think you should find something to occupy yourself with. You have had enough time alone."  
Again he was right. A small smile appeared on Brooklyn's face.  
"I would rather find someone to occupy myself with." He replied. "Tell you what: I'll do a quick sweep of the neighborhood and if everything is okay, I'll just head back. Maybe I'll bury myself in the library for a change."  
"Good idea," Lexington agreed "And if it helps, I have had a hard time to accepting them, too." He remembered instantly how he had felt for Angela. It had been painful for him too when Angela hadn't chosen him. But that was ancient history for Lexington. "If you want to talk, you can always find me." He put a hand on Brooklyn's shoulder.  
"Thanks Lex, you're a real friend." He said, sincerely. Then he jumped down from the roof.  
Lexington watched him fly away for the second time. He was positive that this little chat would help turn it around. But he would need to check on him from time to time. He also left the roof to glide back to the castle.

Demona was on her way to the Eyrie building. She had questions and she hoped that Xanatos would have the answers. However, she had to be careful. The other gargoyles hated her, and this time she didn't want to fight them. Maybe the drone parts and her questions would interest Goliath as well. She would just love to see Goliath's face when he realized that Xanatos was up to something behind his back.  
She couldn't help but wonder if she would have a chance to see and speak with her daughter. In the past, she had tried to use Angela to kill Goliath and take his place. But yet again, a human had betrayed her. Besides, what she had been doing was wrong. Too bad she set up the plan before they had spent time together. Demona had never thought she would be a mother after the eggs were lost in Scotland. However, she was a mother and knowing this fact made her reconsider certain things: possibly more than what she considered to be healthy.  
A familiar noise interrupted her thoughts. She looked to her left and saw an identical drone, which followed her now openly. Demona frowned and pulled her pistol. She had decided to bring the small weapon because she could hide it easily and there was no way she would go unarmed in Xanatos's home, as it was enemy territory.  
As she aimed the pistol, Demona noticed that there were two other drones. But these two looked slightly different. This obviously wasn't the time to check the details so she fired the gun. It took two shots to destroy the first one while the remaining two returned fire. They shot small darts which were likely poisoned; Demona had no doubt about that. With an elegant pivot she evaded the darts.  
At that moment a big helicopter emerged from behind a building. From its underside two more drones were released. Demona fired a couple of shots at the two drones and one of them blew up. Again, she evaded the darts. Perhaps the drones were controlled from the helicopter, she assessed. If she shot it down, maybe she could escape. So she flew towards the helicopter and aimed at the cockpit.

Strangely enough, the night had changed for Brooklyn. He now felt the same thrill as with the first time he flew over Manhattan. That little talk with Lexington had freed him. At least it was good to know that he wasn't the only one who had to deal with Angela's decision. Lexington was also right in that he needed to do something and move on. He wished he had spoken with him earlier.  
The city seemed quiet enough, at least by Manhattan standards, so he turned around to head back to the castle. Then Brooklyn heard shots. He even recognized the sound and he knew it was one of Xanato's special weapons. He gritted his teeth;he thought they had managed to destroy the last of them months ago. But it seemed they had missed one. At least not for long, he thought as he changed his course towards the shooting.  
Brooklyn flew over a rooftop and glanced down. There was a helicopter and there was Demona. She raised her hand and aimed at the helicopter. The hatred for her flamed up in him as he pulled his wings together and fell straight towards her. The moment before she could fire, Brooklyn slammed into her, wrapping his hands around her body as they fell together. Demona's shot went off but missed the helicopter.  
"You fool!" she screamed at Brooklyn while she struggled to free herself from his grasp "Let me go at once!" Of course, Brooklyn did no such thing. But he also failed to notice the drones around them until he felt something hit his back. It was a dart full of tranquilizers, which made his body numb. Demona felt Brooklyn's grip slacken, and managed to free herself somewhat when another drone hit her as well. Both of them became paralyzed as they fell in the night. They landed hard on a rooftop and immediately lost consciousness.  
The drones flew after them hovering over them, until the helicopter arrived. The door on the helicopter's side slid open and two armed men in stealth gear jumped to the roof. They carried both gargoyles into the chopper without a word. Then it took off and flew into the night.

Brooklyn regained consciousness with a throbbing headache. He tried to open his eyes but the light was too bright to keep them open. He closed them again with a struggle. For a moment he just focused on trying to figure out what had happened. Soon he realized he was in a standing position, and his back lay against some sort of cold surface. His limbs were secured, and he couldn't move them.  
A few minutes later he tried to open his eyes again, slowly. This time he succeeded in keeping them open. Soon his eyes adjusted to the illumination and he could look around. He found himself secured to a wall with iron straps. The rest of the room looked like a laboratory of some sort. There was a big table in the middle of the room with extra lighting above it. The table also had several blood stains that trailed around it and onto the floor. Next to the table stood a smaller, wheeled table which was covered with a white sheet. A shiver ran down his spine when he realized this was a dissection chamber. He had seen this too many times in Broadway's detective movies, as well as in horror movies.  
A weak moan broke the silence. Brooklyn looked to his side and noticed he wasn't alone. Demona was next to him, secured to the wall in the same manner. She started to regain consciousness. Her presence was a surprise to him. Until this moment, he had thought that Demona had defeated him somehow. But obviously, that wasn't the truth.  
When Demona fully regained consciousness, she started to look around as well. Then she tried to free her limbs but the straps kept her in place.  
"Save your strength, they're too tight to break." Brooklyn said.  
Demona hissed at him angrily.  
"You fool. If you hadn't intervened we wouldn't have ended up like this."  
"You tried to shoot down a human helicopter. Of course I intervened."  
"Believe it or not, I tried to protect myself, you and the whole clan," she replied as she looked around. As Brooklyn watched her struggling to escape, he saw something strange. Was that a flicker of fear in her eyes?  
"You're right. I don't believe you." Brooklyn said, confident that the current situation was her fault.  
Another angry growl erupted from Demona's throat.  
At that moment the door on the other side of the room opened and three men walked in. Two of them wore light body armor. They were obviously guards. The third man however wore a white laboratory coat.  
He was tall and bald and in his fifties. He wore some sort of special glasses, which was wide and didn't have lenses. The surface of the glasses looked like mirrors.  
"Ah, you are awake already. What great endurance you have. It will be a pleasure to study you."  
"And you are?" Brooklyn asked.  
"My name is not important." The scientist replied.  
"You're the one who broke into Sevarius's house." Demona accused him.  
"It wasn't hard to guess, was it?" he smiled. "Indeed, I needed to obtain some of the data from my previous student."  
The last statement surprised both gargoyles. This man had taught Sevarius?  
"So you are another fool who wants to hunt us," Demona stated. Her voice was cold with threat.  
The bald man walked to a closet in the room and opened it. He started to prepare a syringe.  
"I can assure you, gargoyles are of little concern to me. It is delightful that you are more than an urban myth, but I'm not planning to hunt you."  
"You are lying!" Demona accused him. "You probably need Sevarius's data to create biological weapons against us!"  
"Amusing idea, but you aren't worth the effort. I need the data to clone humans. Or, let's just say I want to produce the perfect human being, and for that, I won't need your genes."  
"Then let us go," Brooklyn added. Of course, he was aware it was a vain attempt. He never had been able to successfully talk himself out a situation like this. But at least it was worth a try.  
"Maybe I don't need your genes, but that doesn't mean I would pass up the opportunity to study you." He finished the preparation of the syringe and walked over the gargoyles.  
"What are you going to do?" Brooklyn asked, eyeing the syringe he held in his hand.  
"It's simple. I admire the old methods of study. If you have a specimen, you open it and you see what is inside. I'm also a gentleman," he smiled. "So ladies first." With that, he injected the entire contents of the syringe into Demona's arm. She tried to resist but she was unable to move from her position.  
"You bastard!" Demona hissed. Suddenly, she started to feel weak and after a few seconds her muscles wouldn't move. However, she remained conscious.  
"Put her on the table, and leave," the scientist instructed the guards. They immediately obeyed and opened Demona's restraints. She fell to the floor like a sack full of potatoes. Demona moaned when she hit the ground.  
"You will pay for this! I'll kill you!" she threatened weakly.  
"Unlikely," was his calm reply. The two guards hauled her onto the table and left the room.  
Brooklyn renewed his efforts to break free.  
"You can't do this!" he shouted at him. The scientist pulled on rubber gloves and prepared for what could only be a dissection. At that moment, both Demona and Brooklyn understood that he going to dissect her alive! Brooklyn redoubled his efforts to break free. Still, no matter how hard he tried to break the restraints, they remained in place.  
As the scientist reached for the scalpel, Demona became terrified. She wasn't immortal any more. She would die in horrible pain within moments. Her head turned to the side as the scientist bumped into the table, checking his instrument. She looked at Brooklyn who was struggling to get free. At that moment their eyes locked on each other. She was still too proud to accept defeat. Yet, fear started to consume her. She didn't have to say a word; Brooklyn could see it in her eyes.  
Her eyes told him everything he had to know. Silently she was pleading for his help. And he knew he had to save her, because he couldn't watch this sadist dissect her. He could see a cruel smile on the face of the scientist. This man enjoyed the fear he caused.  
A feral roar erupted from Brooklyn's throat. Rage took over him; instincts demanding that he escape in any way. Then he figured out how he might escape. It would be painful way but it was his and Demona's only chance. Gritting his teeth, he forced his left hand up. The sound of cracking bones filled the room.  
The scientist had almost cut Demona when he heard the noise and looked up. It was his turn to be frightened as he saw Brooklyn had freed his left hand. He had broken his wrist, but his hand was free. With a swift and painful move, he broke the restraint on his right hand.  
"Guards!" the scientist shouted, and started to walk back to the door. As the door opened Brooklyn freed himself and charged forward with glowing white eyes. The two guards pulled the scientist behind them and raised their weapons. But they were too late. Brooklyn had reached them. He grabbed one of them with his unharmed hand and threw him at the end of the room as hard as he could. While he turned around he made sure that his tail hit the other guard's head.  
The guard hit the wall where the gargoyles were secured a few minutes ago. He lost consciousness and remained on the ground. The other one took a big hit from Brooklyn's tail, but he only lost his balance. Again, the guard tried to fire his weapon, but Brooklyn grabbed his gun-holding-arm and pulled him into his knee. His knee hit the guard's stomach hard, and the guard was bent before Brooklyn trying to catch his breath. The back of his head became an easy target for Brooklyn, and he knock him out with a well-placed punch.  
As he looked up, he saw that the scientist had run out into the corridor. For a bloodthirsty moment, he wanted to go after him and tear him apart. But very soon a lot of guards would be there so he had better escape while he could. He hurried back to Demona. She was still on the table, unable to move. Brooklyn sighed. Why do I have the feeling that I'm going to regret this, he thought to himself as he took Demona off the table.  
Demona felt someone moving her. When her head moved to the right direction and saw Brooklyn she was relieved. Brooklyn wouldn't leave her here. Despite that feeling, the only thing she could say was:  
"Damn! It was about time!"  
Brooklyn grunted. "You know I could just leave you here. I'm sure the doc would be grateful. So don't make this harder than it should be!" Brooklyn snapped at her, as he put her on his left shoulder. It was painful to hold her there with his broken hand, but he would still need his healthy one to escape.  
Since the only way out of the room was where the scientist had fled, Brooklyn ran after him. Or at least hurried, because Demona was heavier than he had expected. Behind the door, a corridor began. To Brooklyn's disappointment, there was no window in the corridor. At the end of the corridor he found two elevators. One of them was leaving the floor, and the other was closing. No doubt that more guards were coming.  
"Don't just stand there. Find a window!" Demona complained when she felt Brooklyn pause.  
"There is no window, so shut up" he replied irritably.  
Brooklyn looked around quickly, until he found what he was searching for. Not far from the elevators stood the door to the stairs. As he headed that way, he noticed that the doorway looked too small for him while he carried Demona. Somehow he managed to get inside the stairwell without putting Demona down. Before the door closed, he heard the elevator arrive. Brooklyn felt he was running out of time.  
Of course he headed for the roof. It was the only way for a fast escape. He climbed the stairs as fast as he could, but suddenly a gun was fired and a couple of bullets hit the wall near him. Instinctively, he jumped back, but because of Demona's weight he lost his balance and fell on the stairs.  
Before he could move, a guard appeared from above. He was holding a much bigger gun than the other two guards in the dissection room.  
"I've got them near the roof on the stairs," the guard said, speaking into his radio. Luckily, he didn't shoot again. Maybe he thought he had hit them, so Brooklyn lay motionless. The guard closed in on them with his rifle aimed. If Brooklyn had been human he would not have had a chance. But he was a gargoyle with a tail. A tail of which, the guard had not paying attention. At the right moment he wrapped his tail around the guard's ankle and pulled it. It happened so fast that the guard shot several rounds into the roof after he lost his balance.  
Brooklyn didn't wait for the guard to regain his balance. The red gargoyle jumped on him and tore the rifle out of his hand. There was no way the human could hold onto the weapon against his raw strength. The red gargoyle grabbed the guard by his bullet proof vest and hit his face hard twice. He roared in pain as his broken hand held the man. The first hit had broken the guard's nose while the second had knocked him out.  
"They're coming," Demona said, as they heard footsteps below.  
"I know," Brooklyn replied, irritably.  
It was probably the security team, which had arrived with the elevator. There was no time to put Demona back on his shoulder. So he grabbed her with his healthy hand and dragged her upwards.  
The guards were approaching when they finally reached the exit. Brooklyn broke open the door with his shoulder. Then he took Demona in his hands with a hiss as his wrist reminded him that it was still broken. He started to run. Fortunately they were on the rooftop of a building and they could see the lights of Manhattan. Brooklyn ran as fast as he could while he carried Demona. The guards reached the roof when Brooklyn still had a few steps before he could jump off the edge. Strangely, no weapon was fired at them.  
The red gargoyle leaped into the air and spread his wings. Because of Demona's additional weight he started to fall, but soon the air caught in his wings and they started to climb. The guards watched them as they flew towards the skyscrapers.

An hour later, Dr. Adolf Kruger listened to the security chief's report.  
"We followed them to the roof, but before we could neutralize them, they escaped. I ordered my men not to shoot them down, because I didn't want to break our cover here."  
The bald scientist pressed his fingers together as he thought about the security chief's report. His lips became a thin line. This wasn't the news he was looking for, but still it could be worse. Especially if that gargoyle had managed to grab him. So all in all it hadn't been that bad after all.  
"Very well, captain." the doctor said finally.  
"Should I organize a search party?"  
"No need for that. My curiosity is satisfied for the moment. They are no threat to our operation here, and even if they came back we could then recapture them. There is no point in spending more resources on them. You may leave now."  
The security chief nodded and walked out of the office. Dr. Krugen looked back at his computer and scrolled through one of the files his men had stolen from Sevarius. The file stated that a few years earlier, Sevarius had worked with Xanatos, which had been after Dr. Krugen had designed robotic gargoyles for Xanatos. That request had seemed odd to him at the time, but billionaires usually were odd people.  
He had followed the news about gargoyle sightings in New York. He hadn't shown much interest, because he had assumed that they were Xanatos's robots. Or Sevarius's escaped experiments. He knew about Sevarius's little project about creating flying beasts. Again, Xanatos had been the customer. The man seemed to be obsessed with gargoyles.  
However, Sevarius's notes proved to be more interesting. It was the first source where he read about gargoyles as a new species. That made him curious.  
Especially when one of his spy drones spotted the female gargoyle around Sevarius's house. That gave him the idea of the trap. To have a male with her was a bonus for him. But he had underestimated their capabilities. It was the first and the last time, he promised himself. If there would be a next time. Unfortunately he couldn't afford the time to hunt them. Maybe when he finished his current project , he could make it a priority.

Brooklyn needed all of his strength and concentration in order to stay in the air and not drop Demona. They were in the air for only a couple of minutes when Brooklyn couldn't fly anymore. He aimed at a rooftop and turned in that direction but he could barley control himself. Demona started to shift in his hands. It seemed that whatever she was drugged with had started to wear off. But her movement made everything more difficult for Brooklyn. For the last couple of meters they were practically in free fall. Not even Demona's efforts as she tried to spread her wings had managed to save them from a hard landing. When they were close to the roof, Brooklyn dropped Demona who fell on it while he flew ahead. At the last moment he turned around and hit the concrete with his shoulder; trying to roll off the impact. It was only partially successful as he managed to roll onto his back and slide until he hit the barrier hard at the roof's edge.  
Minutes passed and both gargoyles just lay where they fell. Brooklyn moaned in pain as he tried to gather himself. During the short flight he had noticed that dawn was near and he wanted to put some distance between himself and Demona before he turned into stone.  
Demona managed to find her strength before Brooklyn did. She stood up and walked to Brooklyn.  
When she reached him he slowly raised himself to one knee, grimacing at the pain. Demona extended her hand to help him up, but he looked up at her threateningly and stood up under his own strength.  
"Are you okay?" she asked, dryly. It wasn't really a question, as Brooklyn's wrist had swollen up to twice its normal size. He couldn't be okay.  
"Yeah, I'll live." he answered.  
"This could have been avoided if you hadn't interrupted me." Demona said to him. She knew that she should leave him now, but she suddenly had the urge to talk with him. To talk to another gargoyle. Even if they would only argue.  
"This could be avoided if you would stop attacking people!" Brooklyn snarled at her.  
"You are a fool! You heard what they said. They stole Sevarius's research data. They are a threat to us! Why don't you see?"  
"You're paranoid, dangerous, and you constantly lie or scheme about something." Brooklyn replied, rubbing his aching wrist and unable to suppress a wince.  
"Then why did you bother to save me?" Demona demanded. But the moment she asked that question, she oddly felt regret for some reason.  
This question caught Brooklyn by surprise. He could tell her the reason; that he believed that no one deserve such a death, but he decided against it. Brooklyn didn't want Demona to know, that he wouldn't kill her. If she believed that he hated her, then threats may be enough to stop her from doing something harmful. So he avoided the question.  
"I've wasted enough time," Brooklyn said, avoiding her question and immediately headed for the ledge of the roof. It was almost dawn. He wouldn't be able to fly back to the castle, but at least he could put some distance between himself and Demona.  
"Brooklyn!" Demona called him by his name. Instinctively he stopped and looked back. "I don't remember the last time I said this," she started angrily, but then her voice softened "But thank you."  
The change in her voice and her expression surprised Brooklyn. The last time he saw her like this was a thousand years ago. For a moment their eyes locked. Then the sun's first light hit the rooftop. Brooklyn knew it was too late. His body changed to stone, and he knew very well that he would be at Demona's mercy. Once Brooklyn became completely stone, pain struck Demona's body, as she began to change as well.  
Once the change was complete she straightened up, flexing her tense muscles. She looked at Brooklyn who was frozen in stone. Immediately her mind started to devise a scheme to use this to her advantage. Then she sighed. He had saved her after all, and she felt somewhat indebted to him.  
She walked closer to him and saw the frightened expression on his face when he had realized that he couldn't get away. Demona stared at his face for a long minute then her gaze moved to his injured hand. It would be completely healed by the time the sun went down.  
Finally, Demona knew what to do. She would guard him during the day. Then she would need to convince him to take her to the castle. Xanatos might have information about that scientist. Not to mention it will be fun to prove Brooklyn wrong, and do the opposite of what he expected.  
Demona settled down on the roof and prepared to spend the day there. From time to time she looked at Brooklyn. Her thoughts started to wander back to the past when they had lived in Scotland. The time when everything had been normal. They had lived as a clan. She had missed the other gargoyles' company.  
She had to warn herself to stop these thoughts. These thoughts would lead only to pain. Again she ended up staring at Brooklyn. She shrugged. Why not, she thought. Demona walked next to Brooklyn and laid her back to him. After what happened on this night, another gargoyle's closeness calmed her, and she soon drifted off to sleep against the cool stone.


End file.
